Thompson & McCarty, P.C. CPA

Standard Mileage rates for 2012.

For business use of an automobile remains at 55½ cents per mile.

For medical or moving expenses, it is 23 cents per mile.

For services to charitable organizations is 14 cents per mile.

Be sure you keep a good mileage log to protect your expenses.

I have come to expect that taxes will change virtually every year.  2012 is no different.  I ran across a good article that summarized the changes in the Journal of Accountancy.  So instead of writing my own article I decided to share the link with you.  http://www.journalofaccountancy.com/Web/20114954.htm

There is a little change for every body but the biggie for business is the drop in bonus depreciation form 100% to 50% beginning in 2012.  Individuals that receive earned income credit can expect more questions and signature papers this year as the government places a larger burden of compliance on the tax preparer by increasing the penalties associated with not meeting the due diligence requirements.  Just let us know if you have questions about any of this and have a great 2012.

Do you realize that similar to any other business a CPA is in business too.  I have to make decisions about vendors just like any other business.  What I learn from my business experiences is one way I gain information to share with my clients.  Purchasing a web site is an area where I have learned some important things to share with you.

What a user sees, hears, or buys (including shopping) at a given web site is the user experience.  For example, the user goes to the website, looks through the inventory or searches it, drop the items they want in the shopping cart, and then check out using a credit card.  What it takes to create that experience is usually multiple services or products. 

On April 27th, 2011 a tornado hit Cullman, AL and destroyed many things.  It swept through the downtown area and destroyed businesses, homes, infrastructure such as power lines and telephone lines and more.  My office was spared a direct hit but the effects were substantial none the less.  We were without power for 6 days and phone and internet services for 8 days.  I had a disaster recovery plan.  I thought that we were ready to quickly reestablish a computer network complete with backed up data.  I learned that I was not nearly as ready as I thought and I hope that this message will help someone avoid my mistakes.

We have seen several issues related to the new homebuyer's credit.  The first problem that we experienced was legitimate credits denied without further substantial proof being submitted to the IRS.  The main reason this happened was due to rampant fraudulent claims.   The most recent issue is the systemic failure of the IRS to properly treat the $8,000 credit for those that purchased a home in early 2009.  This credit did not have to be repaid but the IRS has many of these in the system as repayable credits. 

To get to a basic understanding of what we are now seeing let's look at the history of the "New Home Buyer's Credit".